The Kodak EasyShare M873 combines an eight megapixel CCD imager and a Kodak-branded 3x optical zoom lens with a fairly standard 38 - 114mm equivalent focal range. For framing images, there's a 2.5-inch 154K pixel LCD display, but no optical viewfinder - an increasingly rare option these days and one that would add a good degree of versatility, letting you get the shot when you can't make out the LCD in bright sunlight, or save battery life by disabling the LCD when accurate framing isn't vital. Images are stored on Secure Digital / MultiMediaCards including SDHC types, or in 32MB of internal memory.

The Kodak M873 has 22 scene modes to help beginners achieve the results they're looking for without the need to understand subtleties like shutter speeds, apertures and the like. The M873 determines exposures with a multi-pattern, center-weighted, or center spot TTL metering system, and offers 2.0EV of exposure compensation in 1/3EV increments. Five white balance settings are available including an auto mode, and ISO sensitivity is controlled automatically or manually, ranging from 64 to 1600. The EasyShare M873 also offers a movie mode, capturing VGA or QVGA clips at 30 frames-per-second with audio, in QuickTime MotionJPEG format.

Images and movies captured on the Kodak M873 are transferred to your computer over a USB 2.0 Full Speed connection, rather slower than the USB 2.0 High Speed connections offered on many cameras these days. Power comes from a proprietary KLIC-7006 lithium ion rechargeable battery pack, and a charger is included in the bundle. List pricing for the Kodak EasyShare M873 is set at US$199.95.